Location Based Computerized System and Method Thereof

ABSTRACT

The invention includes a computerized method for providing a location based service, the method comprising reporting a location of at least one user client device to a location based service program, querying a database of location based applications of the location based service program to identify one or more location based applications associated with the location of the at least one user client device, and launching at least one of the one or more location based applications on the user client device so as to offer a user experience for the location of the user client device.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser.No. 61/464,769, entitled “System for Providing users with informationabout locations” filed on Mar. 10, 2011, the entire contents andsubstance of which are hereby incorporated in total by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present document relates to location based services for mobiledevices.

BACKGROUND

Location based services use the position of an end-user to improve therelevance, context, and value of an application. Examples of locationbased services include maps and navigation services, tracking services,information services, social networking, and advertising applications.

Users seeking to use location based services to improve his or herexperience at a location may install separate applications for differentlocations. To do so, users search to find the applications and thendownload applications for the locations of interest. In doing this, theuser spends significant time searching for applications. Further, theuser may not know of the existence of an application at any givenlocation or may not even consider that a location based service may bevaluable.

SUMMARY

The inventors have conceived of a computerized system and method thatcombines a plurality of location based applications into a singlelocation based service program. Specifically, the system of the presentinvention may be downloaded in a single installation to provide locationbased services for a plurality of locations associated with the locationbased service program. The invention may be more fully understood byreference to the following drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of a computerized system, accordingto some embodiments.

FIG. 2 is an exemplary embodiment of a graphical user interface,according to some embodiments.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart for a method, according to some embodiments of theinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

During the course of this description like numbers will be used toidentify like elements according to the different views which illustratethe invention.

FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of a computerized system 100. Thecomputerized system 100 includes a user client device 102 configured toexecute one or more of a plurality of location based applications 104,each of which is configured to provide a location based service for auser via a location based service program 105. The location basedservice program 105 is configured to receive and process data from thelocation based applications 104.

As used herein “program” refers to software or firmware components thatmay be executed by, or utilized by one or more user client devices ofthe computerized system and is meant to encompass individual or groupsof executable files, data files, libraries, drivers, scripts, databaserecords, etc. It will be appreciated that the location based serviceprogram may include a local component and/or an online component. Thelocal component may be a local location based service program 105 aexecuted on the user client device 102, and the online component may bean online location based service program 105 b executed on an onlineserver system 107. The local component functionality may function as asubset of the online component functionality in the event thatconnectivity is not available.

As used herein, “application” refers to a user client device softwaredesigned to help a user to perform specific tasks. Applications may bebundled with the user client device and its system software.Alternately, applications may be published separately. In particular,“applications” may include location based applications. Location basedapplications may provide a location based service for the user. Examplesof location based services include but are not limited to navigationservices, information services, tracking services, and/or socialservices.

Referring back to the computerized system 100, the user may interactwith the computerized system 100 via the user client device 102. Theuser client device may be a personal computer, computer-enabled wirelesstelephone, portable date assistant (PDA), or other computing device onwhich a computer operating system is configured to interact with anapplication. The user client device may include various components notshown in FIG. 1, including but not limited to a processor connected viaa bus to volatile memory (e.g., Random Access Memory), non-volatilestorage device (e.g., Read Only Memory), and/or mass storage device(e.g., a hard drive). The user client device further may be configuredto receive input from one or more of associated user input device 106,such as a keyboard, mouse, stylus, camera, game controller, and/ormicrophone, and to send output to output devices such as a display 108and audio speaker 110. It will be appreciated that these inputs andoutput devices may be integrated into the user client device, such as ina laptop or mobile telephone. A peripheral device 112 equipped withnon-volatile storage may also be provided. The peripheral device 112 maybe, for example, a memory-equipped stylus, mouse, portable USB flashdrive, etc., and may be configured to connect directly, or via a wiredor wireless connection to the user client device 102.

Data associated with the location based applications 104 and thelocation based service program may be stored in the user client device102, in the peripheral device 112 associated with the user client device102, or on a data store, such as a location content provider 116. Theuser client device 102 and the online server system 107 are configuredto communicate via a computer network 118, which may include a wide areanetwork (WAN) 120. In other embodiments, for example, the computernetwork 118 may include a wireless telephone network configured tocommunicate with the user client device 102 and/or additional userclient devices 114.

The computerized system may further include location finding equipment122 so as to determine a location of the user client device 102 for useby the location based service program 105. It may be appreciated thatthe location finding equipment 122 may be included in the user clientdevice 102 as shown at 122 a, may be external to the user client deviceas shown at 122 b, or may be present both within the user client deviceand external to the user client device. It may be further appreciatedthat the location finding equipment 122 may use any number oftechnologies. As examples, the location finding equipment 122 maydetermine the location of the user client device 102 using globalpositioning (GPS) technology or other satellite navigation, WiFitechnology, cell tower triangulation, single cell tower technology, IPaddress, sound based technology, light based technology, any otherpositioning technology, or any combinations thereof. Note that thesepositioning technologies are well understood by those skilled in theart, and will not be described in detail herein. The invention describedherein is not intended to be limited to the use of the exemplarypositioning technologies referenced herein and it may be appreciatedthat any desired type of positioning or location identificationtechnology may be used.

In this way, the location finding equipment 122 may send data relatingto the location of the user client device 102 to the location basedservice program 105. Upon receiving the data relating to the location ofthe user client device 102, the location based service program 105 maydetermine a location of the user client device 102 and select one ormore location based applications 104 based on the location of the userclient device 102. Information for the one or more location basedapplications 104 may be stored in a data store on the online serversystem 107 or from a third party data store, such as location contentprovider 116, and then sent to the user client device 102, for example,via the computerized network 118. In this way, the one or more locationbased applications 104 may be launched on the user client device 102based on the location of the user client device 102.

FIG. 2 illustrates a schematic of the invention, according to someembodiments. In particular, FIG. 2 illustrates a graphic user interface200 displayed via the user client device 102. As schematically shown at202, the location based service program 105 of the present inventioncombines a plurality of location based applications 104 into a singlelocation based service program. In doing this, the user may be alertedof location based applications 105 of the learning service program 105available at the user location. In some embodiments, the graphical userinterface 200 may include an alert 202 such that the user may be madeaware of the location based applications available. Furthermore, thegraphical user interface 200 may include a user input region 204 suchthat the user may allow one or more of the location based applications115 to be launched on the user client device 102.

When the user arrives at a location which has an application, theinfrastructure may also be able to detect the device has arrived. Assuch, 204 may also represent a notification that there are services andapplications available at this location. If the user opts to engage withthe notification that gets pushed to their device, the application willautomatically launch the appropriate experience.

It may be appreciated that the user client device 102 shown in FIG. 2 isone embodiment of a user client device according to the presentinvention and that the user client device may comprise additionalauxiliary features, such as a display, user input device, etc. asdescribed above in reference to FIG. 1.

Referring now to FIG. 3, a flowchart 300 schematically illustrates amethod, according to some embodiments of the invention. In a first step302, the flowchart 300 includes reporting a location. In particular, atstep 302, the location of at least one user client device may bereported to a location based service program. As described in detailabove, determining the location of the user client device 102 may beaccomplished using any positioning technology. It may be furtherappreciated that the reported location of the user client device 102 maybe received from external location finding equipment, location findingequipment internal to the user client device, or any combinationthereof.

At step 302, the method further includes querying a database of locationbased applications. In particular, the database is queried to identifylocation based applications associated with the location of the userclient device 102. In some embodiments, locations associated with thelocation of the user client device 102 may include the actual locationof the user client device 102; however, in other embodiments, locationsassociated with the location of the user client device 102 may includelocations having a similar theme to the location of the user clientdevice 102. In one illustrative example, the user client device 102 maybe positioned within a museum. As such, an application for the museummay be identified. Further, an application for a bookstore having bookson art housed in the museum may also be identified.

In some embodiments, method 300 may further include aggregating data fora plurality of locations. Further, each of the locations may be furtherassociated with a location based application. As such, each location maybe visited such that a location based experience may be created for eachof the locations. Such location based experiences may be launched viathe location based applications 104. As illustrative examples, locationbased experiences may include navigation services for a location,inventory services for items at a location, social application forinteracting with other user client devices 114 also using the locationbased service program 105, although the invention described herein maybe applicable for any location based service application.

At step 306, the method includes launching a location based applicationfor the reported location. In particular, the location based applicationmay be on the user client device so as to offer a user experience forthe location of the user client device. In some embodiments, the method300 may further include receiving a user input. As such, one of more thelocation based applications may be launched based on the user input. Inone particular example, the user may give input, for example, via userinput device so as to indicate that the location based service program105 may launch one or more of the applications.

In some embodiments, the location based service program 105 may receivefurther user input from the user during the location based experience.In particular, the location based service program 105 may learnpreferences of the user based on how the user interacts with one or moreof the location based applications. Based on these learned preferences,the location based service program 105 may offer a specific locationbased experience.

In one illustrative example, a user may enter a museum. Location findingequipment reports a location of the user client device 102 to thelocation based service program 105. The location based service program105 queries a database of location based applications 114 associatedwith the program and identifies a museum application that navigates theuser through a museum and provides information on works of art displayedin the museum. Preferences of the user may be learned by the locationbased service program based on works of art, exhibits, etc. visited bythe user, based on a length of time spent before any work of art, basedon user input received while the application may be within a certaindistance from any work of art. Alternately or in addition, a gender ofthe user may be identified depending on a location of restroomfacilities visited by the user. Such preferences may be stored by thelocation based service program. Next, the user may visit a differentlocation, such as a bookstore. The location based service program 105may then use the information learned at the museum when launching thelocation based application for the bookstore. As such, in one example,recommendations for books at the bookstore associated with works of artmay be offered through the application for the bookstore based onpreferences learned during interaction with the location based serviceprogram at the museum. In this way a specific location based experiencemay be offered to a user based on preferences learned while the userinteracts with the location based service program.

Another illustrative example may include locations advertising theirservices to users of other applications. For example, if we detect thata user launches several stadium applications, a sporting goods store maytake that information and promote their application based on these pastapplication launches. This is more than just advertising specific itemsat the store based on usage, as listed above, but rather advertising theentire application based on past launches. Of course, once the userlaunches the application, they could then get specific promotions basedon their past activity.

It may be appreciated that the example described above includes one ofmany applications for the invention, as described herein. While theinvention has been described with reference to various embodimentsthereof, it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the artthat modifications can be made to the structure and elements of theinvention without departing from the spirit and scope of the inventionas a whole.

The invention includes a computerized method for providing a locationbased service, the method comprising reporting a location of at leastone user client device to a location based service program, querying adatabase of location based applications of the location based serviceprogram to identify one or more location based applications associatedwith the location of the at least one user client device, and launchingat least one of the one or more location based applications on the userclient device so as to offer a user experience for the location of theuser client device.

SUMMARY

The inventors have conceived of a computerized system and method thatcombines a plurality of location based applications into a singlelocation based service program. Specifically, the system of the presentinvention may be downloaded in a single installation to provide locationbased services for a plurality of locations associated with the locationbased service program. The invention may be more fully understood byreference to the following drawings.

1. A computerized method for providing a location based service, themethod comprising: reporting a location of at least one user clientdevice to a location based service program; querying a database oflocation based applications of the location based service program toidentify one or more location based applications associated with thelocation of the at least one user client device; and launching at leastone of the one or more location based applications on the user clientdevice so as to offer a user experience for the location of the userclient device.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising aggregatingdata for a plurality of locations, where each of the plurality oflocations is associated with at least one of the location basedapplications.
 3. The method of claim 2, where aggregating data for theplurality of location further comprises storing the aggregated data in athird party data store.
 4. The method of claim 1, further comprisingreceiving a user input, where the at least one of the one or morelocation based applications is launched based on the user input.
 5. Themethod of claim 1, where the reporting the location of the at least oneuser client device to a location based service program occurs fromexternal location finding equipment.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherereporting the location of the at least one user client device to thelocation based service program occurs from location finding equipmentinternal to the user client device.
 7. A computerized method forproviding a location based service, the method comprising: reporting alocation of at least one user client device to a location based serviceprogram; querying a database of location based applications of thelocation based service program to identify one or more location basedapplications associated with the location of the at least one userclient device; and launching a first location based application on theuser client device so as to offer a first user experience for thelocation of the user client device; receiving user input from the firstuser experience; and launching a second location based application onthe user client device so as to offer a user a second location basedexperience for the location of the user client device, where the secondlocation based experience is at least in part based on the user inputreceived from the first location based experience.
 8. The method ofclaim 7, where receiving user input from the first user experiencefurther comprises receiving a preference of the user and where launchingthe second location based application further comprises recommending alocation based experience for the second location based on thepreference of the user at the first location.
 9. A computerized system,comprising: a plurality of location based applications, where each ofsaid location based applications is configured to offer a location basedservice to a user for a specific location; and a location based serviceprogram configured to determine a location of the user and to launch oneor more of the location based applications based on the determinedlocation of the user.
 10. The computerized system of claim 8, where thesystem further comprises a location content provider.
 11. Thecomputerized system of claim 8, where each of the location basedapplications includes a graphic user interface.
 12. The computerizedsystem of claim 10, where the graphic user interface includes an alertfor displaying one or more of the applications available at the locationof the user client device.
 13. The computerized system of claim 8, wherethe location based service program launches one or more of theapplications available at the location of the user client device basedon an input of the user.
 14. The computerized system of claim 8, furthercomprising a location content provider, where the location contentprovider is configured to send data on the specific location to thelocation based service program.
 15. The computerized system of claim 13,where the location content provider is an online server system.
 16. Thecomputerized system of claim 13, where the location content provider isa third party data store.